Junior
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Masamichi Ito became the first Japanese golfer
to win the Faldo Series Asia Grand Final
Ito Ends Khan’s Bid for
Faldo Series History at Mission Hills
Ryo Ishikawa is the hottest young
Japanese golfer on the planet, but that
might well change if a certain Ma-
samichi Ito gets his way.
Last year, the 14-year-old Ito
became the youngest golfer to make
the cut at a Japan Golf Tour event and
some six months later he has con-
firmed his burgeoning reputation with a
win in the Faldo Series Asia Grand Final
on the Faldo Course at Mission Hills
Golf Club in China.
Ito started the final round four shots
behind Chinese Taipei’s Hsieh Chi
Hsien but he made up that deficit with
a best-of-the-day 3-under-par 69 to set
up a sudden-death playoff. He defeated
Hsien by hitting a glorious 219-yard
7-wood to 12 feet on the first extra hole
and then calmly holing out a winning
birdie.
Ito became the first Japanese golfer
to win the Faldo Series Asia Grand
Final and it brought to an end India’s
Rashid Khan’s bid to become the first
golfer to win the title three years in a
row. Khan’s attempt came up just short
as he closed with a 74 to finish third at
2-over-par 218, four shots behind the
Japanese winner.
trophy with Nick Faldo’s name on it and
I know it will open a lot of doors for me.
“I’m really looking forward to travel-
ing to Lough Erne for the European
Grand Final. It will be a totally new
experience for me but I’d like to think I
can play well.”
Khan already has shown he is a
good traveler, having won two Faldo
Series Asia Grand Finals as well as
the Singapore Amateur Championship,
but his bid to win a third Faldo Series
title faltered with a final-round 74.
Nevertheless, it was another sterling
performance from the 19-year-old from
Delhi, and with compatriot S “Chikka”
Chikkarangappa claiming fourth place
and two other Indians, Abhinav Lohan
and Khalin Joshi, finishing tied fifth and
tied 10th, respectively, it suggests his
country has the necessary reinforce-
ments to take over from the likes of
Jeev Milkha Singh, Arjun Atwal and SSP
Chowrasia, all of whom have won on
the European Tour.
This year’s girls event, also played
over the Faldo Course at Mission
Hills, was dominated by Thailand’s
Thidapa Suwannapura, a 17-year-old
from Bangkok, who led from start to
finish, posting a 4-over-par 220 total
with rounds of 72-74-74. That was two
shots better than Chinese Taipei’s Liu
Yi Chen. England’s Holly Clyburn, the
reigning English and French Girls’ Un-
der-18 champion, closed with 73 to fin-
ish tied third alongside another golfer
from Chinese Taipei, Chien Pei Yun.
Suwannapura displayed a maturity
well beyond her years to claim her first
success outside her native country. She
began her final round with a birdie on
the 522-yard par- 5 opening hole and
then played percentage golf to earn
places in the Faldo Series European
Grand Final and a flagship Ladies Euro-
pean Tour event.
“I’m delighted,” she said. “I wouldn’t
say I played well, but I did what I had to
do. Today wasn’t about shooting a low
score. I set out to play nice and steady
and that’s what I managed to do.
“I’m really excited. It isn’t every day
that you receive a trophy from a six-
time major champion. It’s been a big
thrill.”
Nick Faldo, the founder of the Faldo
Series, was present throughout this
year’s Grand Final and spent time
not just watching but also passing on
advice to the 75 competitors from 18
countries.
Thidapa Suwannapura led from start to
finish to win the girls’ event by two strokes.
